Flying Boats
Flying Boats is a cultural installation in Nanhai, China, by Sordo Madaleno in collaboration with WUA Studio that uses architecture to reframe a familiar object—asking how the common can be seen anew.
The project is part of Art at Qiaoshan – Art Field Nanhai, a cultural program spread across eight traditional villages in the Nanhai District, bringing together artists and architects from 15 countries to translate local history, ritual, and collective memory into spatial form. The central theme of this edition—”be like water”—served as both concept and method.
Located within a former silk-production building, Flying Boats draws influence from the form of the dragon boat: an object deeply embedded in village life, craftsmanship, and seasonal ritual. Rather than presenting the boats as static artifacts, the installation traces their lifecycle—how they are stored, revealed, and experienced over time. Traditionally, dragon boats are submerged underwater during long periods of rest, protecting the wood and extending their life. They later resurface, floating calmly before competition, and finally surging through canals during festivals, appearing to skim—or fly—across the water.
Flying Boats details
Typology
Location
Client
Completed
Materials
Credits
Collaborators / Consultants
Collab with WUA Studio, Fernando Sordo Madaleno, Tamara Muñoz, Jaime Sol, Shawn Shaobo Wu
Images
张静 (Zhang Jing)
